Wednesday, October 15, 2014

ModCloth: More Than Just an Online Store!

Hi, my name is
Sara Lily and I’m a ModCloth addict. No duh, most would say to that declaration. What can I say?
I love ModCloth. I visit the site constantly, have a lengthy love list, and
often have those adorable periwinkle adorned boxes on my front steps when I arrive
home at night. I purchase from ModCloth
often. Yes, they have clothes that are more up my alley than most department
stores. But there is so much more to my love for ModCloth than that.

Customer Service

One of the
things that stand out with ModCloth is their customer service. Sure, all online
stores have customer service but there is just something about ModCloth’s
customer service. Whether it is by chat, email, or phone, I have found the reps
to be so fun, kind, and my experience has always been enjoyable. I may be upset
when I call, but I always end up laughing and feeling better when I reach a rep
– yes, an actual live person! Typically immediately upon dialing! Crazy, right?
They’re just GOOD. I never hang up feeling more stressed than when I called.
Trust me, have you ever tried calling your electric company? Mine has a recorded
robot lady asking me questions and when I get THISCLOSE to being connected to a person, I cough
accidentally and she starts over because she “does not understand my
request.” NO! I just had a tickle in my throat! WAIT! Come back!

Community

When I am on
the ModCloth website, it feels like more than just an online store. It’s got
this cool community vibe. The main reason for this is their Style Gallery.
There, they encourage girls to submit photos of their outfits – whether they are in
ModCloth or not! How cool is that? All the images you submit get posted into
your gallery within 24 hours and they're included on the main gallery so other ModCloth gals can like your
outfit but also see what you've got on and if they can get it on ModCloth! If you hover over the image, ModCloth
shows you what the gal’s wearing and where you can get it on their site. If it’s
not a ModCloth item, it will display suggestions from their site that resemble
what’s in the image. I find this feature so awesome. Fashionistas unite! I know that I am proud of my outfits and love shopping for them and putting them together. In the style gallery, I feel a
sense of camaraderie and support as well as a connection to others who feel the way I do! We’re all there to encourage each other! It’s a beautiful thing!

Sales & Stylish Surprises

A lot of my
friends support my ModCloth addiction but say the same thing – “but they’re so
pricey! How can you afford it all the time?” Sure, some ModCloth items are a bit
pricier than the clothes you’d find at Kohl’s, Target, or JCPenney and there are often times when I love something but have to hold back. One of the awesome things about ModCloth, though, is
that they often have random sales. Suddenly, there’s an email in my inbox
telling me “20% Everything – TODAY ONLY!” Well, gosh darn, get me to the
chopper, Arnold! That is when it’s worth looking at my love list and seeing what I can
splurge on. You gotta act fast though - items sell out fast!

Speaking of
love lists – this is a favorite feature of mine. As you browse the ModCloth
website, you can add items to your shopping cart or you can press the little heart icon by the item's name and add it to
your love list. When you do this, not only do you get a cute love note in
return from the item (too cute!), it gets saved in your profile so you can
easily find it and also watch it until it goes on sale. ModCloth makes grabbing it easy as well - they email you when something on your love list goes on
sale so you don’t miss out on the deal! Yahoo! I see that email in my inbox and, I
can’t lie, I get excited as I open it to see what item went on sale and if they
still have my size. Talk about thinking of the customer!

What’s
really cool about ModCloth is their rare but oh-so-fun Stylish Surprise. This
sale sells out in a blink of an eye it seems! Randomly, without warning,
ModCloth will email or post on social media a declaration of their Stylish
Surprise (I think it only happens a couple times a year). Basically, you pick between three categories: Shoes, Apparel, and
Dresses (at least these were the categories in the recent one!). I don’t
remember the price for Shoes and Apparel but I do recall that for a dress, I paid
$10. Basically, you pay the $10 and you receive a mystery dress in the mail in
your size. Some gals I know will drop $50 or more so they can up their odds on
getting a really awesome score. Talk about serious business! It’s hit or miss
whether you get a goodie or not but it’s all a part of the fun. For $10 it’s
totally worth it!

Going in the RIGHT Direction

ModCloth
does a lot of little things that just make them stand out. They’re doing it
right, folks. For one, they recently signed the Anti-Photoshop
Pledge (not to mention they were the first retailer to do so!) which means
from this point forward none of their models will be photoshopped. This is INCREDIBLE! How daring of them! I already
thought they did a great job representing different body types (you really do
see girls from size 0 to 22 on this site as well as sizing ranging from XS to 4XL - it’s fantastic!) so hearing that they
signed this pledge made it even sweeter to me.

Another
thing that rocks my socks is how caring they are to their loyal customers.
Recently, they did some work on their shipping software in their warehouse that delayed orders and
returns by two weeks or so. I had a return pending but I wasn't in a rush to get my store credit.
Still, even though I didn't submit a complaint about it, I received a $5 coupon
in the mail as an apology for the delay on my return. I mean, sure, it’s $5,
but come on! No one does that! I’m a big appreciator for the small things in
life so ModCloth has won my heart over for sure!

ModCloth
recently started the #FashionTruth
campaign, encouraging their fans and clients to declare their truths on
fashion, the industry, their clothing choices, and more in ModCloth’s “open
casting call for all.” It’s been amazing to see women of all shapes, sizes,
race, etc, share their thoughts, opinions, and beliefs on fashion – all with
adorable outfit-of-the-day selfies, of course! It’s really awesome to see how
far founder and owner, Susan Koger, has taken ModCloth in the right direction
of empowering women! In one of the
videos about the campaign, Koger states, “I want to be a part of an industry
that’s making women feel like the best version of themselves and not making
them feel like they aren't good enough not being a specific body type. I can’t
be a specific body type. I am who I am and that’s actually a great thing so why
not celebrate that and show that off?” Right on, Susan!

Online Store or Girl’s Best Friend?

If you’re
still with me after all that blabbering on about ModCloth, awesome! I hope that
my experiences and opinions on ModCloth were insightful to others beside
myself. For the above reasons and more I just find ModCloth to be so on point
for a clothing company. They just do things right. It’s refreshing to find a company
like ModCloth. It feels weird calling them a clothing company since they are
just obviously so much more. Perhaps ModCloth is more like another best friend –
always on my side, encouraging me to love myself and be confident, all while
providing me with adorably awesome clothes!

4 comments:

Hey girl, what a great post! I love ModCloth with all my heart and I mean not just what is in stock but also their story and the way they're going with their message. It's an amazing and unique thing to see in our time. I hope other companies come to their senses and make similar gestures. Body positivity issues raised by a clothing store --wow, that is a truly magnificent thing to see.

Hi! I actually came across your profile/blog from the ModCloth style gallery. I completely agree, ModCloth fosters a very warm and open sense of community, fantastic customer service, and a realistic range of different body types. Talk about a breath of fresh air. Just wanted to tell you I love your blog/style, especially the minute details you display! :)

Hi! I love your blog and all of your outfits! Seriously, you are inspiring me to wear my brightly colored dresses even in the dead of dreary Philly winter. Also, I found your blog through your modcloth style gallery and LOVE that orange and yellow floral dress you have! Was it thrifted/vintage? Seriously, I need it or something similar in my life. Thanks!

Hi Emily! Nice to meet you and thank you for checking out my blog! I appreciate it so much! You gotta keep those colors going all winter - don't let the cloudy/dreariness let you down! I'd like to think if I wear bright colors, it will keep away the gross winter-ness. haha the orange and yellow dress is vintage! I get a lot of my vintage dresses from an Etsy shop called Capsule Vintage. I wrote about it on the blog as well and here is the URL to the shop: https://www.etsy.com/shop/CapsuleVintage. She has LOVELY vintage dresses all the time!